page_title: Chennakesava Temple, Somanathapura
section_title: Interior wall carvings
hierarchical_section_title: Chennakesava Temple, Somanathapura / Description / Interior wall carvings
caption_attribution_description: English: Photograph taken by self (Dinesh Kannambadi) at the Chennakeshava Temple (also called Keshava or Chennakesava) in Somanathapura, Karnataka state, India. The temple was built in 1268 C.E. under Hoysala king Narasimha III, when the Hoysala Empire was the major power in South India.
context_page_description: The Chennakesava Temple, also referred to as Chennakeshava Temple, Keshava Temple or Kesava Temple, is a Vaishnava Hindu temple on the banks of River Kaveri at Somanathapura, Karnataka, India. The temple was consecrated in 1258 CE by Somanatha Dandanayaka, a general of the Hoysala King Narasimha III. It is located 38 kilometres east of Mysuru city.
  The ornate temple is a model illustration of the Hoysala architecture. The temple is enclosed in a courtyard with a pillared corridor of small shrines. The main temple in the center is on a high star-shaped platform with three symmetrical sanctums, set in a square matrix oriented along the east–west and north–south axes. The western sanctum was for a statue of Kesava, the northern sanctum of Janardhana and the southern sanctum of Venugopala, all forms of Vishnu. The sanctums share a common community hall with many pillars. The outer walls, the inner walls, the pillars and the ceiling of the temple are intricately carved with theological iconography of Hinduism and display extensive friezes of Hindu texts such as the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Bhagavata Purana.
context_section_description: The Navaranga has friezes showing scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.
caption: Close up of decorative lintel inside the temple
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